Keychain?

[trinity266]

two questions:
How do i tell if my processor is fried? (1.4 Ghz Tbird)
does hot heatsink compound ever smell like burning electronics or is that smell actually burning electronics? http://www.PCGuide.com/ubb/eek.gif

There are more details in my post "I think i killed it" however for now i just need to know whether things are as bad as i think they are or worse..
thanks for the help

[YODA74]

Welcome TO PC Guide -- 266--

if it smells like electrical fring humm, it definatly has a distinked smell.
have you used new compound latley? really need to take the cover off and do some snooping around.need more info on sys. did you check fans make shure there running . if you have access to a multimeter that would help. is the sys. crashing ? really does not sound good . http://www.PCGuide.com/ubb/frown.gif

[mjc]

Ahhhh, the smell of ozone in the morning! Heatsink compound can smell bad but it doesn't quite smell like frying electronics. Generally if it smells like burning electronics, then unfortunately, it is. I do believe that the chance of having an extra crispy Athlon is near 100%. http://www.PCGuide.com/ubb/frown.gif Anytime you short the bridges on an AMD chip (unless you know exactly which ones to short) you have almost guaranteed instant death.

How much do you like yours keys? http://www.PCGuide.com/ubb/frown.gif

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mjc
Links list:Computer Links (http://www.dreamwater.org/tech/mjc/index.htm)

Celts are the men that heaven made mad, For all their battles are merry and their songs are all sad.

[trinity266]

i was afraid you might say that. The processor was brand new, the heatsink fan was a working dragon orb three- tested it myself-- i had just put on artic silver 2. i did manage to get a little artic silver on the ceramic part of the chip-that was enough to keep it from booting. after i got it off (and replaced the artic silver and fan of course)the computer still acted as if it had a cpu- (one beep during start up but nothing else) it was only after some tinkering that i managed to screw it up entirely. This is why i should not be building a computer.
thank you for your help-
if you don't mind telling me , what do you think happened? did i short it out with the artic silver? This is my first time building a PC and i really can not bear to have my heart broken again. thanks

[This message has been edited by trinity266 (edited 09-08-2001).]

[This message has been edited by trinity266 (edited 09-08-2001).]

[trinity266]

p.s. unfortunately i left my multimeter at home- I am at an engineering school so i can probably get one though-i am a complete newbie so how do i test the processor? I did take the fan of and look at the chip- i can detect no discoloration or sign of excessive heat- but i do not know what a fried proc looks like.. thanks again

one other thing- i had the case open the whole time and i watched the fans meticulously- there was no falure there. I used a shim- could that have prevented secure contact with the hsf- (a non conductive shim)
sorry about all the questions-


[This message has been edited by trinity266 (edited 09-08-2001).]

[mjc]

Most of the shims are just a hair thinner than the exact height of the core...just enough to make good contact by default. But the bridges on the AMD chips control a whole host of functions (one of which is the multiplier), so if you shorted them then what happens to the proc can only be described as not too healthy. There may or may not be signs of overheating or other damage. One of the other things to look for is hairline cracks in the ceramic, or even little chips...all signs that the proc has been stressed. I think (not quite sure) that one of the sets of bridges deal with voltages...(L1=multiplier L3,L4,L6 also multipler L7=voltage)...so basically you could have inadvertently OCed it to something that it could not handle or changed the Vcore setting too much. There is still the possibility (albeit a slim one) that there is still some paste connecting one or more bridges and that it could still work if it it were thoroughly cleaned. Also check to make sure the "clear CMOS jumper" is in normal or run mode and not clear...clearing it may not be a bad idea either.

Here (http://www.a1-electronics.co.uk/AMD_Section/CPUs/TBirdDuron_overclocking.html)is a page that shows the L7 brdge settings.

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mjc
Links list:Computer Links (http://www.dreamwater.org/tech/mjc/index.htm)

Celts are the men that heaven made mad, For all their battles are merry and their songs are all sad.


[This message has been edited by mjc (edited 09-08-2001).]

[trinity266]

thank you so much for this information that is very helpful- well I am pretty much convinced that the processor is toast by now- I am sorry to keep bugging everyone but i still want to be sure of what happened. The one thing that i wanted to mention is that the artic silver did not touch the bridges at all. it touched a few of the ten components (resistors ?)located under and above the contact area. Would this have fried it? I know this seems irrelevant at this point but if i don't know precisely what happened i will never get the nerve up to put a new processor in. - My dream computer will go to waste and i will probably cry- once again i want to thank you for all the information you have given me-

i guess it is time to check the warranty- or replace my old keychain

[ranchdog]

trinity.... The shim is what caused your CPU to toast itself. And believe me, you aren't the first that has smoked a good chip by using one. Many bad comments around different forums regarding this issue.

Usually what happens is the shim doesn't seat properly over the four little pads on the processor. Therefore the base of the heatsink doesn't make any contact whatsoever with the chip-die itself. Power things up and shortly the CPU is history.

Don't be afraid to try again. Whiz the shim in the dumpster. Use a SMALL amount of A/SII (thin coat) only on the chip-die itself and assemble things. Slowly.

May I suggest the 1.4Ghz CPU needs a first class Heatsink/Fan assembly to prevent having CPU heating problems while the system is in operation.

Luck.

;)

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......Indecision may or may not be my problem......
...... Kickin' A Rock....

[mjc]

Ranch, your probably right, I didn't think about not getting the shim lined up correctly http://www.PCGuide.com/ubb/eek.gif...but either way...it is most likely fried.

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mjc
Links list:Computer Links (http://www.dreamwater.org/tech/mjc/index.htm)

Celts are the men that heaven made mad, For all their battles are merry and their songs are all sad.